


Seven Devils

by SeemaG



Series: Chakotay/Seven [4]
Category: Star Trek: Picard, Star Trek: Voyager
Genre: Background Relationships, Gen, Post-Endgame
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-24
Updated: 2020-10-24
Packaged: 2021-03-09 01:48:11
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,727
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27176108
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SeemaG/pseuds/SeemaG
Summary: Seven of Nine has a request for Tom Paris. Set post Endgame, during the Picardverse.
Relationships: Chakotay/Seven of Nine, Tom Paris/B'Elanna Torres
Series: Chakotay/Seven [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1540528
Comments: 4
Kudos: 18





	Seven Devils

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you to Rocky for the beta and Lori for the encouragement.
> 
> This story follows the events detailed in "Scorched Earth"; it may help to read that one first.

Tom Paris stepped out on the deck of his parents’ cabin on Koltan V, a sparsely populated world about 2 days’ journey from Earth. The wide wooden expanse was buffeted by evergreens on either side, and the crystal blue waters of Lake Ulfur rippled gently in the late afternoon sun. In the distance, the snow-covered mountains of the Udoka range could be seen. For various reasons, he hadn’t spent much time here and he briefly noted various changes since his last visit. But Tom’s attention was mainly focused on the woman leaning against the railing at the far end of the deck, her back to him. He inhaled sharply, straightened his shoulders, and walked over to her. To his ears, his footsteps in black boots, were entirely too loud on the wooden planks.

“Hi,” he said. He kept a careful distance, maybe half a meter.

She did not look at him. “I was not certain you would come.”

“I would have been here sooner, but I ran into a little bit of trouble with the Orions. I had to detour to Free Cloud before rerouting back here,” he said. He stared into the lake. The seemingly endless body of water was mesmerizing. On a hot day, it would be inviting. He waited a beat and then said, “How are you doing today?”

Seven tipped her head slightly. “Better.” She sighed deeply and he could detect the faintest shudder running through her body. Now she turned to face him, and he could see the change in her in three weeks since he’d brought her here to grieve. Her blue eyes were blood-shot, and her prominent collar bones jutted out above the neckline of her brown sweater. Her unkempt blond hair hung limply past her shoulders. Only the implant above her right eye glittered. “I know it was an inconvenience to ask you to meet me here after all you and B’Elanna have done for me, but I could not risk my request being intercepted.” She hesitated for just a moment and then added, “Thank you.”

“It’s no problem,” Tom answered. The message from Seven – received only four days before – had been terse, but the request for help had been unmistakable and could not be ignored. He and B’Elanna owed it to Chakotay to make sure Seven was all right, though they had both been surprised to feel the obligation so keenly. Still, it had made the decision for him to make the two-day journey much easier. “How can I help you?”

“I do not require _your_ help.”

Tom bit back his impatience. “Your message implied otherwise.” Tom leaned against the railing, his weight on his forearms, and kept his gaze forward. “What do you want from me then?” He waited and then added, “What do you _need_?”

“The life I had before,” Seven of Nine said quietly. “But that is not something _you_ can give me.”

He sighed, looked down at his hands. “No. I’m sorry.” The wind stirred the trees. Koltan V had always been quiet, but now it felt a little _too_ quiet. He had the fleeting thought that this was possibly the last peaceful spot left in the Federation. “You’re welcome to stay at the cabin as long as you want.”

“Thank you.” Her lower jaw trembled. “It is very kind of you and B’Elanna.”

Tom dismissed the comment with a wave of his hand. “This place, no one uses it. My parents bought it years ago on a lark and then…” he pressed his lips into a tight line. Like so many other systems in the Federation, Koltan V was now run by several different cartels, making it a challenge to travel from one planet to another, even within the same system. Few worlds had been left untouched by the lawlessness that had ensued since the end of the Dominion War and the collapse of the Romulan Empire. It was only a matter of time, Tom thought now, before Koltan V too fell into chaos. “We’re just glad someone is using it now.”

“I’m not staying.”

The unexpected strength in her voice was surprising, but also reassuring. Seven was a survivor; she always had been, and he was glad to see this side of her reassert itself. “Where will you go?” Earth wasn’t an option; there was too much anti-Borg sentiment there. The home she had shared with Chakotay had been destroyed. Icheb, the only other person she could be said to be close to, was currently aboard the _Coleman_ , en route to the Organia system.

“I am not certain.” For the first time, Seven met his gaze. “You asked what I need.” She took a deep breath. “I need to find Chakotay’s murderers.” The steel in her voice left no doubt of her intentions.

Tom shivered, whether from the sun sinking below the horizon or from the expression in his former crewmate’s eyes, he didn’t know. He took a moment to consider his next words. “Do you even know who they are?”

“Not precisely, but I have made inquiries.” She crossed her arms against her chest. “I need a ship. Fast and well-armored.”

At this, Tom laughed, and then quickly sobered as he realized Seven’s request was entirely sincere and the full force of the implication hit him. “A _ship_?” He shook his head. “You can’t be serious.”

“I am.”

“You’re going after them on your own? Do you _know_ how dangerous that is? You could get killed!”

“Perhaps.” Her eyes narrowed slightly. “But not before I exact justice.”

“Seven.” This was not what he had expected. It would be insanity to let Seven take a ship, to prowl the galaxy in search of those who had killed her husband. But he took a breath, and then another. “Look, what you’re proposing is dangerous.”

“Just living in the Federation is _dangerous_ ,” she said, practically spitting out the word ‘Federation’. “If we had stayed in the Delta Quadrant…”

“We had enemies there too.”

“But not our own government.”

It was a fair point. The Federation of his youth was long gone; battered, stressed, left a former shadow of itself by the Dominion War. And now the current galactic tensions were threatening to destroy everything that had been built, accomplished in the last three hundred years. Tom had spent exactly four years in Starfleet after _Voyager_ had returned from the Delta Quadrant before turning in his three pips, resigning his commission, much to his father’s disappointment. There had been many a spirited conversation over Sunday dinner, but Owen Paris had remained convinced the Federation of old would once again rise, emerging from the destruction and fear stronger than ever. But the contrast between what had been and what was grew increasingly larger and Tom knew he couldn’t stay in Starfleet. B’Elanna agreed with him, and it hadn’t been difficult for them to find employment not far from Kessik IV, working for a private engineering firm that specialized in engineering and manufacturing sleek spacecraft. Every now and then, they received orders for offensive and defensive capabilities that made it clear that the owner would be engaging in riskier adventures.

“Chakotay wouldn’t want you to put yourself in danger for the sake of a vendetta,” Tom said slowly.

“Chakotay is _dead_ ,” Seven said. She pulled her leather jacket more tightly against herself. It was getting cold and the sky was darkening as the sun slipped down below the mountains. “I need a ship. I presumed you could help.”

“I don’t run around in that kind of crowd anymore,” Tom said, but without much heat.

Seven arched her eyebrow. “But perhaps you know someone who does.”

Tom shoved his hands into his pockets. The determination and intent in Seven’s voice was clear; if he didn’t help her, she would find another way. And if he was being truly honest, he didn’t disagree; Chakotay deserved justice. That the Federation had simply left its citizens to be slaughtered was unconscionable. He could hear B’Elanna’s brittle voice in his head, _One of these days, we are going to have to choose_. There had been a spark in his wife’s eye when she’d said that to him, something that had reminded him of her Maquis days, something that caused anxiety to take permanent residence in his heart. Finally, he said, “I can introduce you to a friend or two.” He shook his head, the faintest trace of a smile cutting across his face. “If B’Elanna found out what you were doing, she’d want to go with you. Rip their hearts out with her own two hands.”

“You can inform her that her assistance will not be necessary,” Seven said firmly.

“I’m not telling her,” Tom said. His jaw tightened as he contemplated the ramifications of what Seven intended to do. And he knew, just by helping her find a ship, he was exposing himself and those he loved dearly to possible jeopardy. “As far as I’m concerned, I left you here, your plans for the future unknown.” He indicated the lake and then tipped his head towards the house behind them. “If anyone asks, that’s what I’m going to tell them.”

“That is prudent.” Seven nodded. “When can we leave?”

Instead of answering her question, he said, “What do you plan on telling Icheb?”

At the mention of her protégé’s name, Seven’s lower lip momentarily trembled before she regained control. “I will tell him the same story. It will be many months before the _Coleman_ returns to this part of space.” A glint of fire flashed in her eyes. “I’ll be back before him.”

Tom wished he could believe the confidence he heard underpinning Seven’s voice. What she was proposing was reckless, foolish, and he realized with sudden clarity, entirely _human_. He knew that if anything happened to B’Elanna or Miral, he would feel the same desire to exact revenge, personal costs be damned. “We can leave in the morning. There’s a trading post about 500,000 kilometers from here. My friend has an eclectic inventory. You should be able to find something suitable,” Tom said finally. “I should warn you, though. He drives a hard bargain.”

For the first time since he had arrived, Seven’s lips curved up at the corners. “No price is too high,” she said.

Tom shivered. And this time, he knew the cold was not to blame.


End file.
